1 GRADUATE COUNCIL MEETING 9 May 2012 102 Kern Graduate ...

L6
D. Admissions Requirements (all students)
1. For admission to the Nursing program, an applicant must hold either (1) a bachelor's
degree in Nursing from a U.S. regionally accredited institution or (2) a postsecondary
degree in Nursing that is equivalent to a U.S. baccalaureate degree earned from an officially
recognized degree-granting international institution. Students entering the doctoral
program via the traditional post-master’s route must have earned a master’s degree with a
major in nursing from a program accredited by a national accrediting agency for nursing.
Well-qualified doctoral applicants with a baccalaureate degree in nursing and master’s
degree in a related discipline (e.g., public health) will be evaluated individually to assess
the need for prerequisite master’s-level course work in nursing for doctoral program
admission.
2. Transcripts from all professional/undergraduate programs of study.
Expectation:
• GPA of 3.3 on a 4.0 scale
• Grades of B or better in all sciences and nursing courses
• College Chemistry and Statistics
3. Licensure to practice professional nursing in Pennsylvania.
• Applicants to the Adult Gerontology Acute Care Nurse Practitioner Option are
required to have two years of acute care hospital experience.
4. Two letters of reference
• It is recommended that letters are from academic & professional perspectives. If college
level courses have been taken over the last 5 years, an academic reference is required.
Other references should be from a nursing supervisor preferably with a degree higher
than the applicant.
Expectation:
• Strong references without identification of significant threats to potential success.
5. Statement of Purpose or application essay.
Expectation:
• Coherent writing style with no grammatical errors; description of relevant work
experience; clearly articulated reasons for applying to the selected option and
specialization; long-term goals or career aspirations.
6. GRE's are not required for master's applicants. If already taken, and scores have been
submitted to Penn State, they will be reviewed as part of the application.
7. The language of instruction at Penn State is English. All international applicants must
take and submit scores for the TOEFL (Test of English as a Foreign Language) or the IELTS
(International English Language Testing System), with the exceptions noted below. The
minimum acceptable score for the TOEFL is 550 for the paper-based test, or a total score of
80 with a 19 on the speaking section for the Internet-based test (iBT). The minimum
composite score for the IELTS is 6.5.